The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) banned Denis Lee Morgan of Pembrokeshire Mortgage Centre (PMC) from advising customers on pension transfers and pension opt outs, and from holding any senior management function in a regulated firm.
The FCA ruled that Morgan demonstrated a lack of competence in his oversight of PMC’s pension transfer advice process between 8th June 2015 and 7th December 2017.
This had a particular impact on customers between August and November 2017, when PMC advised an average of 65 people customers a month – largely members of the British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS).
Morgan was either the primary adviser or the pension transfer specialist on these files, which meant he was ultimately responsible for the quality of advice.
In most cases, Morgan failed to consider the customers’ financial situation, retirement needs, their attitude to risk or whether transferring would be in their best interests.
This meant people in a vulnerable position did not get the quality of advice they needed to make an informed decision.
Therese Chambers, joint executive director of enforcement and market oversight the FCA, said: “People depended on Mr Morgan to provide them with suitable advice on one of the most important decisions of their life.
“His incompetence put their retirement funds at unnecessary risk, while earning over £2m in fees for his firm, which he didn’t deserve.”
She added: “Where advisers fail to take reasonable steps to ensure the advice they provide is suitable for customers, we will take action to prevent them harming other customers.”
PMC was fined £2,354,331 for unsuitable advice to customers to transfer out of the BSPS and other defined benefit pension schemes.
